Buddhism and Women
The literary sources reveal that Buddha left his wife and child at home to find enlightenment, which implies that he saw women, and domestic life in particular, as an obstacle in the path of liberation (nirvana). This article is an attempt to question the social norms concerning women accepted by th...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Bloomsbury Publ.
2020
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| In: |
Theology & Religion Online. Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary
Year: 2020 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | The literary sources reveal that Buddha left his wife and child at home to find enlightenment, which implies that he saw women, and domestic life in particular, as an obstacle in the path of liberation (nirvana). This article is an attempt to question the social norms concerning women accepted by the Buddha and Buddhism through the lens of gender. In addition, it throws a critical light on the eight garudhammas (rules to be observed by fully ordained Buddhist nuns).Buddhism was introduced by the Buddha as a tradition that changed the extant Vedic way of life to his own “way of life,” known as Buddhism in the contemporary world. It cannot be said that the Buddha converted people from Vedic religion to Buddhism. Instead, the Buddha used the debate to figure out higher truth through logic and attract people to Buddhism. Thus, the roots of Buddhism lie in denouncing the obsolete practices of the Vedic system that promoted any kind of nobleness/righteousness established by birth. In contrast, he promoted righteousness and nobleness based on action and logic. Unfortunately, an important and often overlooked aspect of Buddha and Buddhism, in general, is about women’s place. |
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: Theology & Religion Online. Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.5040/9781350971066.003 |